March 2010
Riverton Sold at Auction

As CHPC predicted in Debt Threat, the unwinding of 100,000 units of over mortgaged housing has begun with the auction sale today of Riverton Apartments. In the first completed foreclosure of that process in New York City, Riverton Apartments has been taken over by CW Capital the Special Servicer of the Commercial Mortgage Backed Securities Trust that held its mortgage. Read the Inside Edge on the auction.

December 09
Impact of new regulations on New York City's Residential Mortgage Market

After Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were put into conservatorship in 2008, many new regulations were put in place for the residential retail mortgage market.

CHPC recently held a meeting of practitioners from the housing industry - led by Dan Levitan, Managing Director at The Manhattan Mortgage Company - to discuss the impact of these changes on the New York City housing market. Read our latest Inside Edge detailing this discussion.

September 09
Over Mortgaged Properties

For the last several years many multifamily properties in New York City have been carrying debt that exceeds their ability to pay.

Analysis of these properties indicates that many of them are headed to foreclosure and bankruptcy as the result of unsustainable debt levels.

Newspapers have recently carried stories on housing projects such as Riverton Houses and Savoy Park, utilizing CHPC comment. However, these stories only address a small portion of the problem. CHPC's in-depth report provides an analysis of the problem in New York City, its implications across the country, and public policy recommendations for federal, state and local government.

This work was made possible through a special grant from the Local Initiatives Support Corporation of New York City

Useful Links

Citizens Housing & Planning Council - How Will Current Financial Instability Affect Housing and Community Development in New York City?, Inside Edge, September 2007.

Levy, Dina, Shultz, Harold, Walsh, David - Opportunities for Preservation of Overleveraged Multi-Family Housing; PowerPoint presentation, NYSAFAH Conference, May 2009.

Congressional Oversight Panel - The Continued Risk of Troubled Assets

Deutsche Bank - The Future Refinancing Crisis in Commercial Real Estate

Deutsche Bank - Commercial Real Estate Outlook Q2 2009: Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development - The Sub-Prime Loan Crisis in New York Apartment Housing

Commercial Mortgage Backed Securities Association - CMBS Basic Overview

The Urban Homesteading Assistance Board - Guide to searching for deed and mortgage records on Lexis Nexis

For questions please contact Harold Shultz or follow our press inquiry guidelines

Case-Shiller Home Price Index
*Now updated for June 2010* (Released August 2010)

We are continously tracking the S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index, which examines the rise and fall of single family home prices in 20 major metropolitan areas of the United States. June 2010's unadjusted index shows small increases in the New York area, in Southern California and the 10 Major Metro Areas. Prices in Las Vegas continue to show no recovery. However we expect that July’s numbers will show drops resulting from the expiration of the home buyer’s tax credit.

This CHPC chart below is designed to clearly track single family home prices in the New York City area, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and the Case Shiller Index of the 10 major metropolitan areas. We also include a trend line that shows how the index for the 10 major metro areas would have changed if home prices had appreciated at the historically expected 5% (See this Freddie Mac analysis of long term home price trends). Our "normal" trend line starts at January 1993 and increases prices annually at 5%.

The attached FAQ sheet from Standard&Poors gives more detail on the elements of the index.